Elphaba Thropp is a

fiction Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying individuals, events, or places that are imaginary, or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent with history, fact, or plausibility. In a tradi ...

character Character or Characters may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''Character'' (novel), a 1936 Dutch novel by Ferdinand Bordewijk * ''Characters'' (Theophrastus), a classical Greek set of character sketches attributed to The ...

in '' Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West'' by Gregory Maguire, as well as in the Broadway and West End adaptations, '' Wicked''. In the original 1900 L. Frank Baum book '' The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'', the

Wicked Witch of the West The Wicked Witch of the West is a fictional character who appears in the classic children's novel '' The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' (1900), created by American author L. Frank Baum. In Baum's subsequent ''Oz'' novels, it is the Nome King who is ...

is unnamed and little is explained about her life. Elphaba is modeled after the Witch portrayed by Margaret Hamilton in the classic 1939 film '' The Wizard of Oz'': green-skinned, clad entirely in black and wearing a tall peaked hat. Maguire formulated the name "Elphaba" from the phonetic pronunciation of Baum's initials — "L.F.B.".

Actresses who have portrayed Elphaba

The role was originated on Broadway and in London by Idina Menzel, who won the 2004 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical. The role is currently slated to be played by Cynthia Erivo in the upcoming film adaptation of the musical. Actresses billed in the lead role in various productions include:

North America

Broadway

* Idina Menzel (October 2003 — January 2005) * Shoshana Bean (January 2005 — January 2006) * Eden Espinosa (January — October 2006) * Ana Gasteyer (October 2006 — January 2007) * Julia Murney (January — October 2007) *

Stephanie J. Block Stephanie Janette Block (born September 19, 1972) is an American actress and singer, best known for her work on the Broadway stage. Block made her Broadway debut in 2003, originating the role of Liza Minnelli in '' The Boy from Oz''. After readi ...

(October 2007 — June 2008) * Kerry Ellis (June — November 2008) * Marcie Dodd (November 2008 — January 2009) * Nicole Parker (January — July 2009) *

Dee Roscioli Dee Roscioli (born Danielle Marie Roscioli on July 20, 1977) is an American singer and actress, who is known for her performances as Elphaba in the Broadway, Chicago, San Francisco, and national touring productions of the musical '' Wicked''. E ...

(July 2009 — March 2010) * Mandy Gonzalez (March 2010 — January 2011) * Teal Wicks (February — September 2011) *

Jackie Burns Jackie or Jacky may refer to: People and fictional characters * Jackie (given name), a list of people and fictional characters named Jackie or Jacky ** Jackie, current ring name of female professional wrestler Jacqueline Moore ** Jackie Lee (I ...

(September 2011 — January 2013; July 2017 — July 2018) * Willemijn Verkaik (February — May 2013) * Lindsay Mendez (May 2013 — February 2014) * Christine Dwyer (February — December 2014) *

Caroline Bowman Caroline Bowman is an American theatre actress who has performed in multiple Broadway musicals, including '' Fame'', '' Grease'', ''Spamalot'', '' Evita'', ''Wicked'', '' Kinky Boots'', and the national tour of ''Frozen''. Education Bowman a ...

(December 2014 — September 2015) * Rachel Tucker (September 2015 — July 2016) *

Jennifer DiNoia Jennifer "Jenny" DiNoia (born February 23, 1982) is an American singer and stage actress. She is best known for her work in musical theatre, especially ''Wicked'', playing the lead role of Elphaba in various productions around the world. Career ...

(July 2016 — July 2017) *

Jessica Vosk Jessica Vosk (born September 30, 1983) is an American singer and actress, known for her work in musical theater. Vosk is best known for her performance as the lead role of Elphaba in ''Wicked'', which she played on Broadway at the Gershwin Thea ...

(July 2018 – May 2019) * Hannah Corneau (May 2019 – February 2020) *

Lindsay Pearce Lindsay Heather Pearce (born April 30, 1991) is an American actress and singer best known for her work in musical theatre. She made her Broadway debut as Elphaba in ''Wicked'' in February 2020 and later made her national tour debut as Janis Sark ...

(February – March 2020; September 2021 – May 2022) * Talia Suskauer (May 2022 – Current)

1st U.S. National Tour (''Emerald City Tour'')

Kristy Cates Kristen "Kristy" Cates (born March 14, 1977 in California) is an American actress and singer. She is best known for her role as Elphaba in the Chicago production of '' Wicked'' and as the original understudy in the 2003 Broadway production. She ...

(Temporary: March 2005) *

(Original) (March 2005 - March 2006) * Eden Espinosa (Temporary) (August - September 2005) * Julia Murney (March - September 2006) * Shoshana Bean (September - December 2006) *

Victoria Matlock Victoria Matlock (born in Salt Lake City, Utah) is an American musical theatre actress. She appeared in the Broadway and Off-Broadway productions of '' Million Dollar Quartet'' in the role of Dyanne. She has been involved in several regional t ...

(January - November 2007) *

Carmen Cusack Carmen Cusack (born April 25, 1971) is an American musical theater actress and singer. She is known for playing Elphaba in the Chicago, North American Tour, and Melbourne productions of the musical ''Wicked'' and for originating the roles of Ali ...

(November 2007 - November 2008) * Donna Vivino (November 2008 - July 2010) *

(July 2010 - June 2011) *

(June - October 2011; September 2012 - April 2013; July 2013) * Mamie Parris (October 2011 - May 2012) * Nicole Parker (May - September 2012) *

Alison Luff Alison Nicole Luff (born December 20, 1988) is an American singer and stage actress. She is best known for her extensive work in musical theatre, notably for her roles as Elphaba in the First National Tour of ''Wicked'' and Jenna in the Broadw ...

(April 2013 - April 2014) * Emma Hunton (April 2014 - February 2015) *

(February - March 2015)

2nd U.S. National Tour (''Munchkinland Tour'')

* Marcie Dodd (March 2009 - April 2010) *

Vicki Noon Vicki Noon (born 1985) is an American theater performer, who played the lead role of Elphaba on the Second National Tour of ''Wicked'', a role she had previously covered in various other productions of the musical. Early life Vicki Noon was bor ...

(April 2010 - January 2011) * Anne Brummel (January 2011 - April 2012) * Christine Dwyer (May 2012 - March 2013) *

(April 2013 - March 2014) * Laurel Harris (April 2014 - January 2015) * Alyssa Fox (October 2014; January - December 2015) * Emily Koch (December 2015 - September 2016) *

(September 2016 - September 2017) *

(October 2018 - February 2019) * Mariand Torres (February 2019 - September 2019) * Talia Suskauer (September 2019 - March 2020; August 2021 - March 2022) * Lissa deGuzman (March 2022 - Current) Mexico City * Danna Paola * Ana Cecilia Anzaldúa Chicago, Illinois * Ana Gasteyer (June 2005 - January 2006) *

(January - December 2006) *

(December 2006 - June 2008; August 2008 - January 2009) * Lisa Brescia (June - August 2008) Los Angeles, California * Eden Espinosa (February - December 2007; October 2008 - January 2009) * Caissie Levy (January - May 2008) * Teal Wicks (May - October 2008) *

Raini Rodriguez Raini-Alena Rodriguez (born July 1, 1993) is an American actress and singer. She is known for her roles as Trish in the Disney Channel original series ''Austin & Ally'', Maya Blart in '' Paul Blart: Mall Cop'' (2009) and '' Paul Blart: Mall C ...

(Knight Squad, March 2019) San Francisco, California * Teal Wicks (January 2009 - March 2009; June 2009 - February 2010) *

(temporary; March 2009 - May 2009) * Eden Espinosa (March - June 2010) * Marcie Dodd (June - September 2010)

Europe

West End (London) Production * Idina Menzel (September - December 2006) * Kerry Ellis (January 2007 - June 2008, December 2008 - May 2009, August - October 2014) *

Alexia Khadime Alexia Khadime (born 9 June 1983) is a British actress and mezzo-soprano, known for her roles in musical theatre and television. Career Theatre Khadime made her first appearance on the stage in 1999, when she appeared in "Cinderella" at the Ha ...

(June - November 2008; May 2009 - March 2010) * Rachel Tucker (March 2010 - October 2012; September 2016 - January 2017) * Louise Dearman (October 2012 - November 2013) * Willemijn Verkaik (November 2013 - July 2014; January - July 2017) *

(October 2014 - January 2015) *

Emma Hatton Emma Hatton (born 6 April 1983) is a British actress and singer, who played the role of Elphaba in the West End production of ''Wicked''. She has also understudied the roles of Meat and Scaramouche in ''We Will Rock You'' and has a number of o ...

(February 2015 - September 2016) * Alice Fearn (July 2017 - July 2019) * Nikki Bentley (July 2019 - January 2020) * Laura Pick (January 2020 - February 2022) *

Lucie Jones Lucie Bethan Jones (born 20 March 1991) is a Welsh singer, musical theatre actress, and model. Jones first came to prominence while competing on series 6 of ''The X Factor UK'' in 2009, where she finished eighth. She represented the United Ki ...

(February 2022 – Current) UK & Ireland Tour * Nikki Davis-Jones (2013-2014) *

Ashleigh Gray Ashleigh Gray is a Scottish Actress and Musical Theatre performer best known for playing Elphaba in the London and UK & Ireland touring productions of ''Wicked''. Early life Gray was born in Fife, Scotland and educated at Newbattle Communi ...

(2014-2015) * Amy Ross (2018-) Stuttgart, Germany * Willemijn Verkaik * Oberhausen, Germany * Willemijn Verkaik (March 2010-August 2010; November 2010-February 2011) * (August 2010-November 2010) * (March 2011-September 2011) Scheveningen, The Netherlands * Willemijn Verkaik * Renée van Wegberg (''Alternate'')

Asia Pacific

Tokyo, Japan * Hamada Megumi * Higuchi Asami * Imai Minori * Ebata Masae Melbourne, Australia * Amanda Harrison (2008-2009; 2009) *

Jemma Rix Jemma Rix (née Stevenson; born 25 December 1984) is an Australian theatre performer, who has played the role of Elphaba in the Melbourne, Sydney, Australian and Asian touring companies of '' Wicked''. Rix first performed the role in the shorten ...

(2009-August 2009; May 2014 - present) Sydney, Australia * Amanda Harrison (September 2009-November 2009) *

(November 2009-September 2010 and May 2014 - present) *

Pippa Grandison Pippa Jody Grandison (born 12 September 1970) is an Australian actress and singer. She currently lives in Sydney, with her husband Steve Le Marquand and son. Career Pippa Grandison was born in Perth, Western Australia. She made her debut in t ...

(December 2009-May 2010) *

Patrice Tipoki Girlband was an Australian Pop music, pop band that was formed in 2006. It was put together by Sony BMG together with Peppermintblue Management and Mark Byrne from Rogue Traders. There were four members: Renee Armstrong, Renee Bargh, Jess Smith ...

(May 2010-September 2010) *

Laura Bunting The first season of ''The Voice'', the Australian reality talent show, premiered on 15 April 2012 and concluded on 18 June 2012, with Karise Eden being crowned as the winner. Coaches and hosts On 29 May 2011, it was reported in '' The Daily T ...

Osaka, Japan * Ebata Masae * Kimura Chiaki * Higuchi Asami * Okamura Minami Brisbane, Australia *

Auckland, New Zealand *

Fukuoka, Japan * Ebata Masae Seoul, South Korea *

(December 2011 - October 2012) *

(Alternate Elphaba, May 2012 - October 2012) (They have shared the role of Elphaba equally through the entire run).

References

{{Wicked Characters in Wicked Fictional activists Literary characters introduced in 1995 Fictional characters with precognition Female literary villains Fictional kidnappers Fictional nobility Oz (franchise) witches Characters in American novels of the 20th century Fictional offspring of rape Female characters in musical theatre